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Neighborhood Improvement Advisory Committee
Meeting Minutes
Wednesday, July 10, 2013
7:00 p.m.
120 Washington Street, 3rd Floor
Members Present: Lucy Corchado, Dorothy Hayes, Leslie Limon, Barbara Mann, RoseMary O’Connor
Staff Present: Kristian Hoysradt (Mayor’s Office), Dominick Pangallo (Mayor’s Office), John Pelletier (Salem Mass in Motion Coordinator)
Reading/Approval of June 12th Meeting Minutes: Unanimously approved.
Special Guest, John Pelletier, Salem Mass in Motion Coordinator: Mass in Motion is funded through a four-year grant provided by Partners Healthcare. The program is just wrapping up its first year in Salem, and is active in 51 other communities.
Since coming to Salem, Mr. Pelletier has engaged with community members and leaders, along with the schools etc. to improve systems environments and enact healthy policy changes. These efforts include:
- Expansion of school gardens among Salem Public Schools
- Breaking down the barriers to get food from the gardens into the classrooms while working with the Mass Farm to School Program
- Holding Salem’s first walk to school day in April
- International Walk to School Day will be in October, during which Mass in Motion hopes to engage all Salem schools
- Implementation of the Salem Spins bikeshare program
- Working with the Salem Farmer’s Market to help with promotion – looking into a possible second market with the North Shore CDC in the Point Neighborhood
- Creation of a walking map of Greenlawn Cemetery with Friends of Greenlawn
Mass in Motion is also working to develop an infrastructure inventory to identify and evaluate access to schools and parks in Salem so that the City can work to fix barriers that would prohibit residents from taking advantage of them: sidewalks, poor park conditions etc.
Lastly, Mass in Motion is seeking a representative from NIAC to serve on the Mass in Motion Committee. Any interested members should contact John Pelletier at (978) 619-5604 or jpelletier@salem.com.
Note: Dominick and Kristian will look into improving the vendor food available during Haunted Happenings through potential collaboration with the Salem Farmer’s Market and Chamber of Commerce.
City Updates
July 4th Update
- The Salem 4th of July events went very smoothly
- Absolutely no arrests reported by law enforcement officials
Canal Street Project
- All abutters of the project will soon receive letters in the mail outlining detours throughout the course of the project
- Copious signage will be provided for detours
- Contractors staging is already set to begin work soon
East Riley Plaza Lot Sale
- A final vote by the City Council to sell the lot to RCG for their new development is anticipated for the July 18th Council Meeting
- RCG representatives will be on hand to answer any questions
- All renderings and the design of the project will be subject to the Salem Redevelopment Authority, Planning Board and Design Review Board
- All current public parking spaces will be retained in the new project – 38 spaces will be provided by RCG which will be initially free, and then raised to a market rate comparable to Salem’s rates
- The project will include a 100-room hotel, retail space and some apartments
New Recycling & Disposal Opportunities
- Handouts were provided at the meeting and are available online at:
Bertram Field
- The contaminated soil has been removed and work has begun at Bertram Field
MBTA Garage
- The MBTA Lot will close later this month and the Universal Steel lot will not be open until sometime in late August
- The City has negotiated a $1200/month lease with Alpha Auto to provide 30-35 free parking spots for commuters near the station
- The City is also looking to lay paved walkways from North Salem
- Working with MBTA and North Shore TMA to disseminate information as the changes take effect
2013 Paving Program
- Dominick will provide NIAC with a full list of the streets included in the 2013 list
- Prioritized streets not completed in 2012 will be included
- Paving was delayed due to political theatre on Beacon Hill
- After Salem received the FEMA grant for Canal St, $2 million has been appropriated from that project, for the Paving Program
- Once Chapter 90 funds come in, the City will add $850K for more road paving
- Note: Dominick will check on the road paint issue, and check on the signage at the Choate Statue, John Pelletier will get info on Newton road tape
City Inspectional Walk-Throughs
- Mayor Driscoll, along with representatives from Health, Building, Parks, DPS, Fire and Police will walk various neighborhoods this week, including High Street, the Point Neighborhood and Boston Street/Gallows Hill, along with Franklin Street/Court, to identify issues that need addressing by the City
Problem Properties Task Force
- A task force has been reactivated by the Mayor which includes Building, Health, Police, Solicitor and Collector to discuss problem properties throughout the City
- A Clean It or Lean It ordinance is making its way through the Council to give the City more options in cleaning up problem properties
Registered Marijuana Dispensaries
- Medical marijuana passed in Massachusetts in 2012
- Salem has been contacted by 5 or 6 different companies seeking to setup a dispensaries/cultivation sites
- All marijuana would be genetically altered so that THC – the substance in the drug that gets a person high – will not be present in medical marijuana
- Product cannot be ingested – generally vaporized on premises
- No companies have begun the process of moving through ZBA
North Shore Medical Center Building
- NSMC is building a new power plant to replace the old plant
- Blasting will close the access road, so residents in that area will have to enter through the back way – more details available on Salem.com
New Business
- Leslie Limon of the Northfields Neighborhood Group outlined issues in the Franklin Street/Court area of the city – Dominick will follow-up on actions the City can take to address those concerns
Adjournment: 8:21 P.M.
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